Welcome to the final part of this series on self-care for heart, soul, mind, and strength:
Part 1 – 25 Self-care Ideas for the Heart: for singles, widows, married people, and everyone
Part 2 – 25 Self-care Ideas for the Soul: for students, ministry people, and everyone
Part 3 – 25 Self-care Ideas for the Mind: for intellectual and mental health
Part 4 – 25 Self care Ideas for Strength: for our bodies (below)
To care for our physical bodies, we all need the basics of water, food, and adequate rest. But what may be appropriate self-care for one person may be too much or too little for another, and our needs may well change over time depending on our age, health, and other factors. So I’ve listed a range of ideas below, but please be aware of your unique personal situation, and consult your health care provider about what is best for you.
Some of the other self-care lists in this series include ideas that could fit just as well under caring for our bodies—like eat with other people and clean just one corner of your house (as part of caring for the heart), and play with your pet or get away for the weekend (as part of caring for the soul). These nurture our physical strength as well, but instead of repeating those ideas, please refer to those other lists along with what I have below.
With this article completing the series, we now have 100 self-care ideas to choose from! I hope these can be a helpful resource, and please feel free to add more ideas in the comments below.
25 Self-care Ideas for Strength
- Stretch
- Sit up straight
- Have a glass of water
- Have a cup of herbal tea
- Eat an apple
- Have some dark chocolate
- Try a new recipe
- Buy yourself something new to wear
- Make your bed
- Treat yourself to a bubble bath
- Nourish your skin with body lotion
- Get a massage
- Get a manicure/pedicure
- Get your hair cut
- Take a nap
- Go to the dentist
- Check with your doctor on what level of physical activity is best for you
- Take the stairs instead of the elevator
- Go for a walk
- Go for a swim
- Ride a bike
- Run
- Sign up for an exercise class
- Have a pajama day at home
- Recognize your physical limits
Helpful Related Links:
14 Beautiful Fruit-Infused Waters to Drink Instead of Soda
Healthy and home-made fruit-infused waters can help us stay hydrated.
Black Bean and Corn Salad with Chipotle-Honey Vinaigrette
I won a gift basket that included a can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, so I googled what to do with it and found this recipe. This salad was so easy and tasted so good that I made it for three weeks in a row!
Habits that Work: My Daily Hallelujah
How Leslie Sansone’s walk-at-home program helped me get more regular exercise.
How to Make an Amazing Self-care Kit for Bad Days
Some great ideas for caring for our bodies in this article, including having comfy clothes for tough days, using an eye mask and ear plugs for better sleep, calming down with a weighted blanket (which was a new idea to me).
Four Gifts: Seeking Self-Care for Heart, Soul, Mind, and Strength
This blog series is based on my book—table of contents, endorsements, and order information available here: Four Gifts: Seeking Self-Care for Heart, Soul, Mind, and Strength.
Writing/Reflection Prompt: What self-care ideas for the body can you add to this list?
For more on everyday acts of faith,
April Yamasaki 
April, thanks for this post. I love your list, and especially some of the links. The walking videos and weighted blankets are new ideas for me. To do an in-home, low-key video is great, especially on days where I don’t really want to go to the gym, be around people, or I’m not feeling great.
Good to hear from you, Rosalie. I still try to focus on step aerobics and weights, but when I neglect those for too long, I go back to in-home walking as a way to get myself back on track. I’m needing to do this again since I’ve been out of town and haven’t been working out regularly.